Triblocal is reporting the formation of the "North American League"...

"Earlier Monday, Northern League Commissioner Clark Griffith said teams in three leagues would play each other. But officials now say what is happening is formation of the North American League, with about 18 teams throughout the country."

Omaha, Tijuana, and Yuma would be new teams. I'm not sure if Yuma would just buy the Scorpions or not though. And those teams are maybe's. And Chico and Joliet have issues to work out.
Seems like a big money pit to me.

GoCyclones!

11-19-2010, 12:19 AM

I'm very skeptical about this. I'll place the over/under at two seasons and I'll take the under. A team in Omaha? The Storm Chasers (former Royals) are moving into a new ballpark, and are the affiliate of probably the best minor league system in the country. Is this new league with a sketchy background gonna compete with that? Gonna try Tijuana again? Definitely have my doubts.

stg2010 front office

11-19-2010, 10:15 AM

Big problem last season for the GBL was Maui...and the travel issue. Is the league going to pamper Maui the way they did in 2010? Not going to sit well with the Canadian teams.

I can't see that Maui makes any sense at all, unless there are 3 more teams in an island division. Tucson's sitting out the 2011 season. Maui needs to do the same, unless there are 3 more island teams in place for 2011.

Tijuana? Yeah, right. Just what the league needs. How many times did we try that, last season? We don't need teams incurring the expense to travel to a war zone and play on a rec field in front of a crowd of 15.

Unless the new league makes some hard choices, I gotta go with Cyclones under figure.

elpaso

11-19-2010, 01:29 PM

I read an article out of Yuma that the GBL will be in charge.

Sounds like SSDD under a new name.

I will stick with the American Association which along with the Atlantic League appears to be on solid ground.

LaVidaLoca

11-19-2010, 02:23 PM

ElPaso et all...If this works, these owners, and CEO's will be looked upon as visionaries...and if it fails...no real loss. I'm not saying it WILL work, but, if it makes it thru 2011, look for more teams looking for stability to jump in the mix in 2012. I have had many doubts about the GBL, but when you throw in 2 other leagues I am more apt to wait and see and hope it succeeds for all of the scouts, Indy fans and the cities.

I say good luck and keep playing!

nlfan

11-20-2010, 02:26 AM

Keep in mind that:

1. Joliet (city and possible new owners) want to go to the FL.
2. Lake County still doesn't have a permanent stadium
3. Schaumburg has a huge debt that's now supposedly structured as a Lien
4. The ULB lost its top franchise (Amarillo) and another location (Laredo) and is now down to some of its weakest locations
5. The ULB barely survived into 2010 when court injunctions prevented the GBL from taking the best locations. It's hard to believe it will survive 2011 in the current form.
6. As an amalgamation of 3 leagues there will be a lot of management issues between centrally owned clubs (of the GBL) and those run by individual owners (which in the NoL are used to overriding anything the commissioner says). At the very least they'll have to muzzle Cluck Griffith who lost all credibility years ago with his losing track record on expansion.

The NAL reflects desperate measures that try to prop up 3 leagues that would otherwise have lost all credibility. The winner in this is the AA which added 4 strong franchises and appears to be moving one to a stronger location. Even if the NAL survives 2011, they're unlikely to be viewed as visionaries. They will still be a major risk when competing against the AA or AtL.

If it would "succeed" the question is "in what form?" Is the NoL dead or will it try to break away again. Remember that the NoL in 2002 had 16 teams in two "conferences" and the owners roundly split it up. The league is now 1/4 of its former size and likely to be 1/4 of that if/when Joliet moves to the FL.

Ken, Steelheads fan

11-20-2010, 04:27 PM

Keep in mind that:

1. Joliet (city and possible new owners) want to go to the FL.
2. Lake County still doesn't have a permanent stadium
...

Bill,
The Lake County Fielders have a permanent stadium. This is it:
http://www.hellochicago.com/media/articles/large/4130_image4_large.jpg

All home games are now played here. What they don't have is a permanent seating bowl. Their fans seem to love coming to home games regardless, so the ballpark is yet another non-issue.

...with that said. The Fielders' future has begun to seem cloudy to me because of a firm lack of league choice at this late date. It has nothing to do with the ballpark. If I was a Fielders season ticket holder, then I would sit on my hands until I was certain the team was having a season before writing a check. The Rockford Riverhawks seem to be the only remaining Northern League team with a contingency plan. If the NAL doesn't pan out then they can go back to the Frontier League. If not the Frontier League then they can partner up with Gary in the AA down the road. I wouldn't have a problem writing them a check if I was a season ticket holder.

...
The NAL reflects desperate measures that try to prop up 3 leagues that would otherwise have lost all credibility. The winner in this is the AA which added 4 strong franchises and appears to be moving one to a stronger location. Even if the NAL survives 2011, they're unlikely to be viewed as visionaries. They will still be a major risk when competing against the AA or AtL.
...

Agreed. The NAL notion that they can attract and share national sponsors (suggested in their press release) is a fallacy. Other minor leagues have tried the group approach before and it doesn't work with regional teams.

...and with THAT said. The winner is the AA as of...this is November 2010? As of November 2010 the AA has stronger franchises. However, the conditions still exist that caused teams like Schaumburg and Joliet to have problems. No one is immune for now.

LaVidaLoca

11-20-2010, 06:29 PM

Steelheads...does Lake County still have a mgr? I heard they are looking.

MJHankel

11-20-2010, 09:29 PM

Steelheads...does Lake County still have a mgr? I heard they are looking.

Tim Johnson

LaVidaLoca

11-21-2010, 12:26 AM

Awesome...the old Toro's skipper...good man...he managed a few friends a while back and was a great players mgr. The beer will be flowing!!

ca

11-21-2010, 09:08 AM

potential club owners may want the fl the ones who pay the bills (the fans) may not . as for the fielders park at least you have a park that the loop/ mgmt wants to be in unlike a certain fl club which might be why the fans in joliet dont want the fl

hawksfan29

11-21-2010, 12:26 PM

ca...there is nothing wrong with the FL. it is a much more stable league then the NAL or for that matter the GBL, ULB, & NL. only the AA and the FL are smart options for joliet.

almost all the jackhammer fans are not upset about going into the FL because almost all the jackhammer fans do not care what league they are in. they are there for fun and entertainment. they come out 1 to 3 times a year. when the go to a hammers game it is becasuse of fireworks or a giveaway. not because they are playing the flyers, thunderbolts, or t-bones.

if the jackhammers go into the FL than that is a good thing, and almost all of the fans will not even notice any difference. you will notice. i will notice. but almost everybody else, who is not a diehard, will not notice.

also i do not understand you last sentence. what do you mean about the fielders and a certain FL team?

ca

11-21-2010, 03:43 PM

contraction as well so they arent without their woes

rangerfan

11-21-2010, 03:47 PM

The ULB is a scam. The GBL doesn't seem much better. This may last one season.

hawksfan29

11-21-2010, 09:48 PM

every league has their dud teams, including the FL. oakland county and kalamazoo are the main duds right now. the point is that just like AA, the FL is very stable as a whole. kalamazoo is in trouble. they can not survive at their current park. they need a new facility and there has been no talk of it. oakland county needs their park to have a "real" groundbreaking. one way or another, it is pretty clear that the FL will stay at 12 teams (or more) for 2011. monday is a big day for the league, and everything should be more clear next week. (at least you hope)

ca

11-22-2010, 07:10 AM

may have put the d in dud and if they have 12 clubs next year the commish may need a sanity test

Ken, Steelheads fan

11-27-2010, 02:17 PM

This is like chess. The city of Joliet opened with the Frontier League. The JackHammers countered with the NAL. The city of Joliet is pressuring both Rooks with more specifics on their Frontier League plans.
City: Frontier League will take new Joliet baseball team (http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/sports/2539060-419/league-team-jackhammers-frontier-joliet.html)

The deal in the works would sell the JackHammers to a group headed by one of the team’s minority owners, Alan Oremus. But the ownership would change.

“It’s not the JackHammers going into the league. It’s a new team,” Thanas said.

Still too confusing to capture a Rook though. Why should Oremus bother to buy the JackHammers if the JackHammers aren't going to be the Frontier League team? Protection from future lawsuits?!?

ca

11-27-2010, 03:24 PM

means less payroll , less travel and most of all no past debts . btw joliet cruisers anyone assuming kzo returns and what does this all mean for the nal ?

GBearFan

11-29-2010, 08:30 PM

So, what happens to the NAL's "Northern League/Division" now that the JackHammers are out of Silver Cross Field and the Frontier League is in?

The NL is now down to 3 organizations, one with no lease (Schaumburg), one with no stadium (Zion), and one with not much hope of playing ball next season unless they make some sort of move VERY soon (Rockford). I don't know if I should include the Omaha outfit, seeing that the organization that pulls the strings on the new ballpark there says they are not in any talks with an NL team.

This offseason just keeps getting worse for the lifeboat members of the NL.